Adiós Austin, Come In Cain?

2018 hasn't been the particularly kind start to the new year many Indians fans might have hoped for. More players, key players at that, have departed the club than new players have joined. Carlos Santana joined the Phillies, Bryan Shaw is now a Rockie, Joe Smith is an Astro, Jay Bruce is back in New York with the Mets, and Boone Logan has moved to Milwaukee.

With the news that Austin Jackson signed for the Giants yesterday, another one bites the dust. The Tribe have not had the greatest off-season when it comes to retaining their free agents. Jackson moves to the west coast on a 2-year deal worth $6 million initially and with eyes on a starting gig in center field.

I was optimistic about Jackson's chances in Cleveland and he proved me right. I felt he was fantastic value for money as a depth option in the outfield and he brought solid and consistent defense to a position that required some of that. He was offensively decent too; over 85 games Jackson batted .318 with a .869 OPS, to go along with 7 home runs and 35 RBI. Not too shabby for a minor league invite. Unfortunately two trips to the disabled list somewhat derailed his output over the whole season but he was undoubtedly effective when he was in the lineup.

Oh, and he did this too.

Jackson's departure leaves the Indians with Bradley Zimmer, Michael Brantley, and Lonnie Chisenhall as their primary outfielders. Minor league invitee Melvin Upton will be hoping to replicate Jackson's 2017 success and make a case for himself to be on the roster as well. Prospects like Greg Allen will also be hoping to catch the eye of manager Terry Francona.

Apart from Upton, the Indians' outfield is looking very one dimensional at the moment, with Zimmer, Brantley and Chisenhall all left-handed batters. Upton is a righty but he's not even a sure thing to make it through spring training.

So before the sunny skies of Arizona shortly greet this 2018 ballclub, they could really do with an extra dimension in the outfield. Specifically, a right-handed one.

One option still available is Lorenzo Cain and, coincidentally, he bats right-handed.

Cain is arguably the top free agent left on the market. Though likely to be more expensive than what Jackson cost San Francisco, his output was superior in 2017. Cain slashed .300/.363/.440 with an .803 OPS, good enough for a 112 OPS+ over 155 games for the Royals. He hit 15 home runs, 49 RBI and stole 26 bases, combining for a 4.1 WAR overall. Cain is clearly an asset that will benefit the majority of major league teams

One possible red flag to consider is the similarities he shares with a certain Michael Bourn - a speedy player who uses those legs to cover the outfield, but hits for a high average too. Bourn's legs and overall production declined soon after his big money move to Cleveland. The concern is that Bourn's time with the Indians provides a cautionary tale ahead of any potential deal for Cain.

However Cain might not be the kind of player we presume him to be. Maybe there's more to him than just speed and good defense. In fact, the outfielder might be getting better in some aspects, especially when it concerns his offensive abilities. In 2017, he posted the best walk rate of his career at 8.4% and his strikeout rate was a career-low, just 15.5%. Perhaps he can avoid the same path as Bourn, even as he approaches 32 years of age.

Another factor to consider is Cain's qualifying offer from the Royals, which will unfortunately cost any team that signs him up to two Draft picks. And last but not least, the biggest obstacle in the Indians’ way could be Cain’s contract demands, as he isn’t likely to be cheap. A player of his quality and at his age will be looking for the most he can get (understandably) so the Tribe could miss out to one of their wealthier rivals if they can’t negotiate a deal.

With doubts still lingering over how healthy Michael Brantley can be in 2018, signing Cain to man left field could be a wise decision. I would certainly welcome him on a short-term deal, and if the Indians could pick him up for 2 years I think it could be a great acquisition. I'm a big Brantley fan and would love to see him return to the sort of form we saw in 2014-15, but I think the smartest move would be to hope for the best and prepare for the worst. Signing Cain, one of the top outfielders in this market, would be significantly wise preparation.

Tigers Tame Tribe & DL Disturbance

Apologies for my lack of words regarding the recent Mariners series win. I was away for the weekend on my stag-do (American readers, see bachelor party). Therefore I wasn't in the best condition to be writing about baseball, even if it was largely good, victorious Cleveland baseball.

The Indians traveled to Detroit this week to kick off a 10-game road trip and didn't get off to the best of starts, losing what should have been a four-game series by two games to one, thanks to a rainout on Thursday that reduced the series to three games. The sole victory came courtesy of Carlos Carrasco, who pitched 6 strong innings in a narrow 3-2 win on Wednesday night, and he was backed by a key Jose Ramirez triple that scored 2 of those runs. Let's look at some of the news items that cropped up over the course of the series.

Disabled List Dilemmas

On Tuesday the Indians placed outfielder Austin Jackson on the 10-day disabled list with a hyperextended big toe, and relief pitcher Shawn Armstrong was called up from Triple-A Columbus in his stead. The injury occurred in the ninth inning of Monday's 7-1 loss, as Jackson planted his left foot awkwardly on the first base bag after legging out an infield hit. He was clearly in some pain but thankfully it appears this injury is unrelated to Jackson's left knee surgery he had in June 2016, that ended his season.

I was slightly surprised Jackson's trip to the DL wasn't met with a like-for-like swap, with Tyler Naquin being the most obvious choice to take the open roster spot. That could still happen but we all know how Tito loves a stocked bullpen, so Armstrong got the call this time. The Tribe are currently carrying Michael Brantley, Lonnie Chisenhall, Abraham Almonte and Brandon Guyer as their core outfielders, and Jose Ramirez can fill in if necessary, as could a couple of others if forced. It seems like the skipper is happy with his lot though and he might not want to interrupt Naquin's development in Columbus for what could be just a 10-day stint until Jackson's return.

So far this season Jackson has been platooned in center field, primarily facing left-handed pitchers, and is slashing .273/.368/.485 (BA/OBP/SLG) with 1 home run, 2 RBI, and 5 walks in 38 plate appearances.

Corey Kluber took the mound on Tuesday but exited after three innings due to some discomfort and tightness in his lower back, which has been causing him grief on and off all season. Outside of this rocky start in Detroit, Kluber had pitched at least 6 innings in every appearance this season but there have still been signs that he hasn't been operating at one hundred per cent. The amount of walks he's given up have been relatively high (13 in 37.1 innings) and his ability to induce weak contact from opposition hitters has been poor, with some stats suggesting he's been the worst in the league at doing so. He's also given up 7 home runs this year - that's already half of his season total (14 HR) from 2014, the year he won the AL Cy Young. It's clear he's not been his old self and the pain in his back is almost certainly why.

The Tribe's ace pitcher has now been officially placed on the 10-day disabled list, with reliever Joe Colon taking his spot to further reinforce the bullpen. To be honest, Kluber could benefit from a bit of time off. He had an incredibly intense 2016 season, throwing a total of 249.1 innings between the regular and post seasons. It's far better to rest him now and not risk further injury later down the road when the games become more slightly more important in a potential division race. Plus, he's likely to only miss one scheduled start, so could return in mid May to slot back into the rotation.

Mike Clevinger is the prime candidate to fill in on Sunday against the Royals, when Kluber was set to pitch next. However because of the rainout in Detroit tonight, he could now feature on Monday instead, against the Blue Jays in Toronto. Clevinger has been in fine form this season with a 1.50 ERA over his six starts down at Triple-A Columbus, with 32 strikeouts and 10 walks in 30 innings. He also pitched on Tuesday so is lined up perfectly to feature on schedule. With the Indians carrying so many bullpen arms at the moment, it's likely one of Armstrong or Colon will be swapped out for Clevinger, probably just prior to when he's required. I for one am looking forward to watching the big right-hander pitch for the Tribe once more, and hope he can impress, should he get the call-up.

The Indians Have An Elite Bullpen

The Tribe bullpen were called to arms this week against the Tigers and on the whole did a stellar job.

In Monday's opening game, starter Trevor Bauer was pounded early, giving up 5 runs in the first two innings alone. Somehow he managed to last four innings in total, giving up 7 hits, 7 runs, 5 walks, and struck out 3, and it was just an awful outing overall. "It was bad," Bauer said. "I didn't command the ball well, obviously." Yeah, no shit Trevor! Thankfully Zach McAllister and Dan Otero combined to pitch the rest of the game, and mopped up 4 collective innings of scoreless ball. It was an encouraging outing from the relief duo and prevented the 7-1 loss from looking even more lopsided.

Tuesday's second contest saw Shawn Armstrong, Nick Goody and Boone Logan combine for 5 shutout innings with no hits allowed after Kluber was forced from the game with his back injury. Despite the Indians losing the game 5-2, the trio of relievers kept the team in the game all the way. Special mention must go to Armstrong in particular, throwing 2.2 innings with 3 strikeouts, and making the most of his opportunity in the bigs.

In the third game Wednesday night we saw the Indians' top guys, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen, who did not disappoint. Miller pitched the seventh and eighth innings, allowing just a single hit and striking out 4, allowing no runs as usual. Allen entered in the ninth and despite not letting the Tigers tag him for a hit, he did allow 2 walks to keep things interesting. Allen enjoyed teasing the Detroit faithful before he struck out outfielder Jim Adduci to seal the Tribe victory, and Allen's 7th save of 2017.

You could make a convincing argument that the Indians' bullpen is the strongest part of this team. The entire group have a 1.91 ERA with 96 strikeouts over 80 innings of relief. Miller has seen the most action thus far, 13.1 innings, and has yet to surrender a run and carries a 0.00 ERA. He is followed by Allen and Bryan Shaw, who each have 11 innings pitched. At the time of writing, the bullpen have gone 12 games (34.1 innings) without allowing an earned run. During that stretch they have struck out a whopping 48 hitters.

Overall I can't praise this Indians bullpen enough. They are doing everything a manager and a fanbase can ask of them.

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Because the final game against the Tigers has now been postponed the Indians will travel to Kansas City for a three game series at Kauffman Stadium. Danny Salazar will face off against Jason Hammel tomorrow night, and he has struggled for the Royals in 2017.

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Magic In Minnesota, Twins Get Swept

The Indians got back to winning ways on the road, winning their first series since the opening week in Texas. A heavy dose of rain on Wednesday night reduced the four game set in Minnesota to just three games and Cleveland emerged victorious in each one, sweeping the Twins to take their overall record to 8-7.

Here's some talking points from the Tribe's trip to Target Field.

Back Of The Rotation Getting The Job Done

The Indians sent their three, four and five guys to the mound over the course of this series and each pitcher performed well, picking up the win in their respective game.

Danny Salazar got the series started on Monday and shut down the Twins over 6 innings of work. He allowed 7 hits, 2 walks and 1 earned run, whilst striking out 7. It was his best start of this early season and Bryan Shaw, Andrew Miller and Cody Allen combined to earn Salazar his first win, and seal a 3-1 victory for Cleveland.

Josh Tomlin, who was awful in his first couple of starts, also put in his best performance of the season so far. Tomlin was gifted a 3-0 lead by the time he walked out to the mound but proceeded to give 2 runs right back on a Max Kepler sac-fly and a Robbie Grossman double. Just as everyone was about to panic, Tomlin settled down and only gave up one more run, another sac-fly in the fourth inning. Overall Tomlin was effective, lasting 6 innings with 7 hits surrendered for 3 earned runs with 2 strikeouts for good measure. The offense backed him and he also picked up his first win, in a 11-4 Indians blowout. It must be his new haircut.

In the third and final game Trevor Bauer took the ball for the Indians and guess what, he pitched his best game of the season too! Similar to Tomlin, Bauer had also lost his previous two starts but despite the cold and damp conditions he pitched well, lasting 6.1 innings. He gave up just 3 hits but walked 3 as well, for 2 earned runs, and he struck out 7 batters as well. Credit must go to Bauer for working his way out of a sticky fourth inning. After a slip on the mound that resulted in a balk to open the scoring, Bauer got out of a bases loaded situation and avoided the big inning that might have lost this game. Fortunately the Tribe offense picked him up later in the seventh inning and Shaw, Miller and Allen did their thing again to seal the sweep and give Bauer the win.

It's a big positive for any ballclub when your back of the rotation guys can all produce quality starts that keep your team in the game. Fortunately for Salazar, Bauer and Tomlin, the offense was there to capitalise on Minnesota's less-than-stellar pitching staff and get the win each time out. I'm still not convinced Tomlin will be in the rotation all year long, especially when Mike Clevinger is forcing the issue down in Columbus.

The Kipnis Predicament

Rumor has it that Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis is ready to return from his strained right rotator cuff injury. Kipnis opened the year on the disabled list after experiencing some discomfort in his shoulder and the club rightfully took precautions. Now Kipnis is back to full health and could feature this weekend against the White Sox in his native Chicago, maybe even as early as tonight.

This creates a roster problem for Terry Francona and co. Who makes room for Kipnis' return?

The likely choice will be Yandy Diaz. The young Cuban who took spring training by storm hasn't managed to produce those sort of numbers thus far in his first taste of the big leagues but he's been surprisingly good with the glove. Diaz is slashing just .236/.295/.255 (AVG/OBP/SLG) with 2 RBI and 5 walks to 14 strikeouts and has just one extra-base hit so far, a double. He's featured almost every day at third base but hasn't made the most of the plate appearances he's had.

Nevertheless, with Kipnis set to resume his duties at second base, that means Jose Ramirez will slide back over to third base. Ramirez has been red hot to start the season, slashing .345/.415/.618 with a 1.034 OPS, plus 4 home runs and 16 RBI, with 8 walks (and just 8 strikeouts.) At this stage in Diaz's development, it wouldn't be beneficial for him to ride the bench and just fill in on Ramirez's days off. The sensible option would be to demote Diaz to Columbus and keep him playing everyday.

The only other option would be to keep Diaz on the roster and continue to use him as an outfielder, a position he's very familiar with. But I can't see this happening honestly. The Indians are committed to developing Diaz at third base and after all this early season effort, what would be the point in pushing Diaz back to a corner outfield spot? Also, the Tribe are stacked with outfielders at the moment, so much so that Tyler Naquin was dropped to Columbus only recently when Lonnie Chisenhall returned from the DL. If the Indians decide to continue carrying Diaz, they'll have to drop Abraham Almonte or Austin Jackson. Jackson in particular is unlikely to be demoted as the Indians would have to risk losing him entirely through waivers, something I don't think they'll even contemplate at the moment.

I'm sure we'll see Diaz again in 2017 but for the time being, Columbus will almost certainly be his new home for the foreseeable future.

Player Of The Series

There is always a host of candidates for this award when a sweep is involved but the lucky winner this time is Cody Allen. The right-handed 28 year-old closer featured twice against the Twins, recording his 3rd overall save of 2017 in Monday's win, and he pitched a scoreless ninth inning on Thursday as well. Allen made Indians fans sweat on Monday however, giving up 2 hits and a walk before finally ending the inning for the save. Allen loves to turn his save opportunities into a spectacle but thankfully more times than not he gets the result we all want. He is one of the best relief pitchers in baseball after all.

The Indians now travel to the south side of Chicago to take on the White Sox in a three game series, their second match-up of the season. Both teams will send their respective aces to the mound tonight, as the Tribe's Corey Kluber will faceoff against Chicago's Jose Quintana. Cleveland will be keen to continue their recent form against AL Central opposition and pad their lead at the top of the division.

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Center Of Attention: A Discussion

For the first year in a long time the Indians' roster is fairly settled across the board heading into spring training. The lineup is strong and the pitching is top notch but there is always room for improvement. One particular area of uncertainly is in center field; with Michael Brantley penciled in left field (once healthy) and the effective platoon partnership of Lonnie Chisenhall and Brandon Guyer in right field, it's the men in the middle who currently present the outfield's biggest question mark. In this post I'm going to have a look at the Indians' current options ahead of the 2017 season.

The Current Crop

Currently atop the center field depth chart sits Tyler Naquin. The 25 year-old finished third on the AL Rookie of the Year ballot last season after exploding onto the scene during spring training. Naquin took his opportunity last spring and ran with it; he played in 116 games and batted .296/.372/.514 (AVG/OBP/SLG) with 14 home runs, culminating in an impressive 135 WRC+ and 2.5 WAR. Naquin was especially effective against right handed pitchers and slashed .301/.372/.526 in 289 at-bats (in fact he only faced a lefty 32 times). Not too shabby for a rookie and he'll be forever remembered for that unforgettable inside-the-park homer against the Jays. If he goes on to have a Hall of Fame career in Cleveland, you can already picture that fist pump immortalised as a statue.

Yet despite Naquin's prowess at the plate (and my wishful thinking), his defensive abilities leave something to be desired. This was noticeably obvious in Game 6 of the World Series but Naquin's flaws in the field were evident throughout the regular season as well. According to Fangraphs, Naquin graded as the second worst defensive center fielder in the majors with a -17 DRS (Defensive Runs Saved). Now I don't entirely trust defensive metrics as I feel action in the field, especially somewhere so open like the outfield, can be hard to quantify with accuracy, but the numbers don't make for pretty reading. Even the casual fans among us noticed that his routes to the ball were rather, err, wobbly all season. Even so, he rarely looked like a complete novice out there, despite what the numbers would indicate. When you weigh up the pros and cons, overall I felt that Naquin's bat compensated for his mistakes in the field.

Naquin's closest rival is Abraham Almonte, who this time last year was the clear favorite to play center field on Opening Day. That was before it emerged Almonte had violated the MLB Drug Policy and was suspended for 80 games, paving the way for Naquin's emergence. Almonte returned to the team on July 3rd and played in 67 games, slashing .264/.294/401 over that span and played solid defense. He had a decent stretch as a starter in August and September but was eventually relegated to a pinch hitting role as the regular season came to an end, due to his postseason ineligibility.

Unless Naquin struggles right out of the gate (he was looking more and more susceptible to high fastballs as 2016 progressed) and Almonte gets off to a fast start, I can't see the 27 year-old Dominican becoming the permanent center fielder for a while. He'll likely platoon with Naquin and probably play some left field until Brantley is ready to take over full time again. I grew to really like Almonte in 2015 when his addition to the club jolted the team to life but his 2016 suspension left a sour taste in the mouth, even if it turns out he was innocent. Almonte will be hoping for a lot of reps this spring so he can stake a claim for center field but I can't see Naquin regressing to such an extent that he's not gonna be the everyday guy out there to start 2017.

The Outsiders

Naquin and Almonte should feel pretty secure in their jobs but they will face some outside competition this spring; some men will have their eyes on that center field spot whereas other will satisfy themselves with a place on the roster.

Austin Jackson signed a minor league deal with the Tribe just prior to his 30th birthday and the veteran outfielder will be hoping for a late present, a spot on the Opening Day roster wrapped in a box with a bow on top. Jackson only managed 54 appearances in 2016, thanks to a left knee injury that ruled him out of action from June onward. He's a career .272 hitter and has primarily featured in center field during that time. I think Jackson could be a very useful addition to the team. He'll start the spring with a point to prove, to show the league he can still be a productive everyday player for a top ballclub. He certainly lends some much needed depth to the outfield at the very least but he'll likely need an injury from a rival or a drop in performance to firmly earn his place.

As it currently stands the only other outfielder on a minor league contract with hopes of making the team is Daniel Robertson (unless Wily Mo Pena wants to return to center field!). The 31 year-old journeyman outfielder has primarily featured in left field so won't realistically be expected to figure much in center. Robertson played in just 9 games last year for the Mariners in 2016 but had a decent season at AAA Tacoma. With all of the Indians' other outfield options, I don't see Robertson featuring for the Indians on Opening Day and unless injury strikes, I don't imagine we'll see him figure at all in 2017.

The Prospects

Last but not least we come to the prospects. These guys have been cooking nicely down on the farm but are they ready for a big league job?

The honest answer is no, they probably are not. The top dog for the center field job is Bradley Zimmer, who has been developing nicely in recent years. I've already covered Zimmer and his chances of making the team in part two of my spring wishlist, which you can read here. I think Zimmer will need a bit more maturing in Columbus this year before he's fully prepped for the show. A September call-up should be his goal in 2017, although a nice showing this spring wouldn't hurt his chances.

Greg Allen is the Tribe's dark horse to take over center field in the next year or so and the young speedster received a spring training invite for his sterling work in the minors last season. The 6th round pick from the 2014 MLB draft announced himself in a big way in 2016, leading all of minor league baseball in runs with 119. That's completely insane considering he has yet to reach the AAA level. The switch-hitting 23 year-old began the year at A+ Lynchburg before getting a promotion to AA Akron in late July but his performance didn't suffer at all. Between the two leagues he slashed .295/.416/.413 with 7 home runs, 44 RBI and 45 stolen bases (the highest in the Indians' entire system). You may as well call him Barry Allen as he's so frickin' fast on the basepaths.

Allen had 77 walks to 78 strikeouts, a fantastic ratio and the polar opposite to Zimmer (77 walks to 171 strikeouts). So far in his career Allen has displayed all the attributes of a perfect leadoff hitter. He plays a superb center field too, collecting the 2016 MiLB Gold Glove award for that position, an impressive feat given Rawlings only award this to one guy in the entire minor leagues. Overall I think the dude is a surefire stud and fans should be paying attention to Allen in 2017. He'll likely start the year in Akron but don't be surprised if he gets promoted to Columbus sooner rather than later. Here's hoping we get to see a September cameo from him before the season concludes.

The final center field prospect is Yandy Diaz but realistically he's unlikely to compete for that position this year, if ever. I took a look at Diaz when I analysed Zimmer and despite how versatile and effective Diaz has been throughout his career thus far, his time in center has been limited. He played all of 2 innings there in Columbus, the first time he's featured in center in his professional career. Whilst I think Diaz may have a future in the outfield ahead of him, it's more than likely going to be in the corners.

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Who do you think will claim the center field mantle in 2017? Can Naquin rediscover his early 2016 form and fend off the future advances of prospects like Zimmer and Allen? Or will Almonte and the other veterans elevate themselves during the spring and force their way into Francona's plans? Or could the position feature a revolving door of candidates, rotating in and out of center field depending on whether they're hot or cold?

Whatever happens the center field position should be a topic of conversation all year long.

Thanks for reading.